Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1887-08-09

Lines Which win Not Stay Learned.
Tmprovising Part-JumpIng n whole
Act.
ssIt always seemed queer to me,n said
an actor who had gray hair to give weight
TO his opinion, s'that somebody doesn't
write book ON the psychological aspect
of life on the stage. Probably the actor
has as large an opportunity of becoming
acquainted with curious phenomena OF the
human intellect as any man that lives.
The curious freaks of superstitious fancy
that affiict some of the best known actors
are old themes of discussion. Some think
they can't act il they see horse Of GER
tain color, or if they don't wear n certain
dress, or il they play in a certain house.
Some actors have played one part SO many
times that the work has become entirely
mechanical, and they forget how far along
they have got in the play. Under some
conditions of mind-not induced by drink
either-the oldest actor is liable to miss a
cue or cut fellow actor out of his lines,
no matter If he knows the play SO well
that he can repeat the whole thing from
beginning to end. have known even so
careful and thorough an actor as Lawrence
Barrett, who has played 'Richelieu'
thousands of times, | suppose, to get
thrown off the tracks in the first interview
between the cardinal and Julie and have
to go back to his first speech to get it right
Not long ago / heard Frederick Warde, in
expatiating on his favorite play, Damon
and Pythias, play in which he has acted
principal or subordinate parts for fifteen
years utterly fail to recall three lines from
the very passage he was wont TO deliver
with the greatest effect from the stage.
"But the most curious freak of the
actoT's memory, and the one to my mind
furtherest from any rational explanation,
is the way it will sometimes, and for no
apparent cause, utterly refuse to take any
impression at ALL l remember very well
the first experience of that kind ever
had. was in the company of well
known tragedian of this city A change
in the cast had given me the part Of Bara,
das two days before sRichelieu' was to be
performed. was fairly familiar with the
part and thought / would have no diff
Guilty in becoming dead letter perfect in it.
studied all my lengths that night until
knew them pretty well, and the next day
went at them again. To my speechless
horror / discovered that all that had
studied had escaped from my mind. Read
the lines over rs many times as l would
and strive as hard as / would to impress
them on my mind, not one would stick.
If should ever become n raving maniac
would never be more pitiable object than
was that day. locked myself in my
room and refused to eat while / went over
the lines to myself as Nicholas Nickleby
went over the apothecary's lines to poor
Smike. Toward evening began TO get
the better of them and when went to the
theatre had them all pat. had regained
great deal Of my confidence and thought
should have no more trouble.
'Imagine my feelings when / discov-
cred, as / heard my first cue, that the
whole part had got away from me.
stood before that sea of upturned faces
with no idea OF what / was going to say.
At last found my voice, and said some
thing--I don't know what Such YER
sion Of Baradas no audience ever listened
to as mine was that night. ! struggled
ON making mp sentences as / went along,
and trying to keep what / said within the
general plot of the play, Of which had
fairly distinct impression. ! don't sup
pose what I said sounded half as bad to
others as it did to me, for the people in
the wings told me afterward that few per-
sons not familiar with the text would
have suspected there was anything serious
the matter.
a rush for the dressing ROOM grabbed a
play book and laboriously studied my
next lengths until was to go on again.
It was of no use. couldn't remember q
word of my part when / got before the
footlights. Desperation came TO my aid,
however. / plunged in boldly and got
through an improvisation that would have
made Bulwer's hair stand on end, with
out any bad breaks. That night when ]
was getting into bed, utterly disgusted
with lnyself all those lines came back to
me in heap, and for weeks and weeks
they haunSed me. They took such COM
plete possession of me that / could
scarcely drive them out Of my head when
the time came to learn another part.
stThat was ten years ago, and / never
had q touch of the malady again until
last winter We were trying a new piece
'on the dog in Providence. We had had
it in rehearsal for some time and ! sup
posed / knew all my part and business as
well as knew my own name. ! was the
villain. and in the fourth act was to quar-
rel with and stab my accomplice in crime,
for which l was TO be sentenced TO death
after confessing all my villainy. In the
next net had a scene with the hero just
before the quarrel, ard I'm blessed il
didn't forget lines business and every
thing else. Jumping away down to the
end Of the act, / killed the hero The
author Of the play, who was sitting in a
box, must have been paralyzed at the
liberty took with his text, and the au-
dience must have thought 1t very strange
that the hero should come to lifeso readily
in the next act, and that I should De sen-
tenced to death for merely trying to kill
him. But the saog' lived, and got on
with o scorching from the manager. -
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